Chapter 72 - Everything Within

"Yer' goin' down–right here, right now," he promised, looking up towards the smiling angel.

Raduriel slapped his own chest as the simple movement manifested its own shock wave, "--I'm waiting!"

He planned to unleash everything, unfearing of the consequences of the angel's wrath as he cracked his knuckles.

"Endless Star Shaper"! He thought.

It was a skill from his martial-arts subclass, though it didn't come in the form of an attack, but an amplification that conjured itself in a fiery-red aura around him.

Pushing forward again, he came at the angel with everything he had, pushing his body to its max as he unleashed a series of punches at his utmost speed.

Each hit became sharper, more powerful, exceeding the last's potency as the ground shook beneath their feet.

Radueriel continued to smile as the fists rapidly struck his torso, watching the desperate, red-haired human with his intense gaze.

…Faster, I need to go faster! He thought.

"Endless Star Shaper" –it was a skill that temporarily gave him a unique trait that lasted only for his next combination, and would deactivate if a certain gap of time persisted between attacks: with every attack launched in succession, the next grew stronger. It was a slow growth, but at the speed he launched at, it became monstrous.

It was normally something he'd be unable to do, but against an opponent as conceited and arrogant as the Destroying Angel–it was his perfect chance.

Each strike he launched was a technique inherited by his taekwondo mastery, shifting the position of his knuckles, changing his stance, and striking different spots at the angel's chest with pinpoint accuracy despite the speed.

It went from a half dozen punches a second, rising to a dozen, then ascending further–dozens of punches launching each second as an orchestra of shock waves propelled from their position.

Radueriel was silent, but still smiling and standing tall, planting his feet down against the asphalt, embedding into it for stability as he withstood the endless, rapid barrage.

He was beginning to realize that his fists ached, throbbed, and felt challenged each time they slammed into the chest of the angel, whose chiseled muscles felt as if formed of immutable steel–but, he didn't stop, instead pushing himself to go faster and more intensely.

…Faster! Faster!--It's up to me now! If I can push him back–or even just take him out of commission for a bit until Ma-Ri or Dae-Seong get here, then…! He thought.

Using his heightened perception, he was able to accurately place each blow, planning each one meticulously as each hit was crafted to hurt the angel.

Pure desperation drove his fists: it was all on his shoulders, or rather, his knuckles. When it came down to it, he felt his martial arts techniques were better suited for a situation like this than his assassin skills–after witnessing what happened with Korain, if that man's blade was useless, his was practically dirt to the angel.

Even if my skin breaks, my bones shatter, and my blood spills–I'll give it everything I can–! He thought.

It came endlessly; his sights blurred as his entire body conditioned itself only to the task of hurting the being in front of him, continuing to repeatedly, and with utter swiftness, slam his knuckles against the angel's chest.

The skin of his knuckles had long since been scraped off, bleeding and cauterizing itself through the heat produced by the overwhelming strength and friction used in unison. Past the tearing of his own knuckles, his fists turned to a bruised purple, yet he continued thrusting them forth with even more strength than the last.

"...5…4…"

Radueriel began to count down, prompting him to hasten–each of his hits, now ascended hundreds of times over by "Endless Star Shapter", shook the asphalt and pushed the angel back, though inches, it was still movement.

A cloud of steam had enveloped the two, originating from the constant stream of punches as the angel's golden-brown chest was beginning to bruise.

…Standing here, I've realized–I'm still weak. But, that means I have room to grow. We all do, together, as comrades, friends–and, as a family! Even if this world becomes a barren wasteland, I'll continue fighting–! There's something past all of this, something that'll make it worth all of this tireless fighting, all of this loss–! He thought.

"3…"

With only the last few moments left, he suddenly shifted gears, changing his method of attacks to the surprise of the golden-eyed being as he spun around, carrying the momentum of his barrage into a kick that gathered wind pressure around his leg.

"Weeping Spiral"! He thought.

It was one of the most recent techniques he learned through his taekwondo proficiency, and revealed the precipice of mysticism his martial arts encroached on as he spun around, gathering a gust of wind around his body.

"2…1..!"

"Breaker Kick"! He thought.

[Spirit: -200. Remaining Spirit: 2500/3200]

A potent force gathered around his right leg as he spun himself around, gathering further momentum as the winds grew fiercer.

"Your time's up–!"

He hasn't realized it. I haven't been launching my strongest punches–instead opting for the most efficient, speediest ones while still seeking after some level of strength. This is all for the purpose of cultivating my combo, and using it for this–! He thought.

Radueriel's call came just as the kick was launched, moving swift enough and with such intensity that even the angel found himself unable to evade it within that time frame, witnessing the boot come towards his chin inevitably.

–This is for fucking with my friends…! He thought.

Combined with the exuberant combination cultivated through [Endless Star Shapter], the powerful force garnered through Weeping Spiral's momentum, and the usage of [Breaker Kick] to skyrocket his power–the kick that came landed as if a bomb had sounded off, releasing a shock wave that blew the nearby cars back and shattered the closest windows of the vehicles and buildings.

"Grgh–?!"

Radueriel let out in surprise before being flung to the side like a sports ball, being kicked into the leftmost building like a bullet being shot by a railgun.

"...Phew…"

He held his leg up still, breathing in and out before slowly setting his leg down, catching his breath.